It seems to me that those most upset about this are also the most out of touch with the reality that the very questions Bell raises in this book are those being asked by people both in and out of the church.

As one who spends a lot of time working and talking with those who do not attend church on a regular basis, I can testify that these questions need to be answered…and the typical fare served up in the form of confessions and dogmas in Protestant and Evangelical circles is not doing the job.

There needs to be a fair amount of objectivity when reading this book. Those who consider themselves conservative Christians can all too easily see conflict with what they have been taught. Those outside the church also need to be objective, for Bell’s message is not one that issues a free ticket to heaven.

I strongly believe that we need to be able to visualize the stories and teachings of the early church to better understand how they affected their life together and their ministry to the world. When it came to heaven and hell, the early church lived in the midst of paradox out of necessity. They simply did not have the systematic professional set of tools that we have today to carve out definitive answers. Yet, they seemed to both thrive and succeed in living out the gospel of Jesus Christ.

Such well defined answers as we have them today seem to be detrimental in at least two main ways:

They cause unnecessary division among Christians

They promote an incomplete picture of the narrative of the New Testament

Bell’s book seeks to look past the accepted beliefs, in effect, opening up the box and expanding our thoughts regarding the scriptures.

If Rob Bell is on the right track here, and I believe he is, Christians all the more should lead the way to heaven. According to his accounting those who protest the most will champion systems of belief but those who are living the faith now get the point. Faith alone is enough, but it isn’t the end…there is more…much more.

In case you missed it, I heartily recommend this book and look forward to the dialogue that will follow.